When you described Dr. Urbino and how much time and effort he dedicated to helping the community deal with cholera, you said was "a very giving man." He had a high economic status, a very impressive reputation, and was known throughout the community. Because he had so much authority, I was surprised when Fermina called him a "hopeless weakling...made strong by the weight of his family names" (p 207). While he was professional and authoritative in all other areas of his life, when it came to his mother, Dr. Urbino would not stand up to her on his wife's behalf. If I were Fermina I would be frustrated and probably think of him as a weakling as well.
Similarly to theme I discussed in my previous post about how love can result in pain and making sacrifices for love, Florentino continued to make sacrifices and chase after Fermina. At the beginning of chapter 4, Florentino decided he was somehow going to win Fermina. "He did not even stop to think about the obstacle of her being married" (p 165). It seems to me that everything Florentino did with his life was somehow the result of his feelings for Fermina. He decided to get a job and make money so he could gain as much status and wealth as Dr. Urbino. Florentino's employer, his uncle, never suspected "his nephew's courage did not come from the need to survive or from a brute indifference inherited from his father, but from a driving need for love" ( p 167). He then had 622 relationships to help him drive away he thoughts of Fermina and settle for the pleasures of love making. To answer your question Kai, I actually think Florentino is kind of pathetic and a hopeless romantic. Although she may have not been in love with her husband, Fermina was married. At that point, Florentino should have given up and moved on. He should have stopped living for someone other than himself. Near the end of chapter 14, Fermina pities Florentino and declares what she thinks of him: "It is as if he were not a person but only a shadow" (p 204). He spent half a century of his life wasted while he waited for her, only to be rejected once again.
While Florentino is wallowing in misery as he waits for Dr. Urbino to die, what is happening to Fermina at this point in the book? Although the community sees Fermina and her husband as "the happiest couple," both privately show signs that they aren't very happy in their marriage. If Fermina didn't really love Dr. Urbino, why did she choose him over Florentino?
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